Asking Questions
Benefits Of Questioning
I like questioning but these days, it seems I’ve become more conservative with my questioning habit. I was good at it during my school-days and early in my marriage, to the point that my husband’s response to me often was, “I don’t think I can be able to answer all your questions.” For which I will reply by saying, “then, answer the ones you can answer.” So funny we were, right? I also remember one of our clients by name Craig, was notorious with questioning. Craig was annoying with the way he asks questions. He asks questions to everybody, on every topic imaginable, he used questioning as a show-up, and as his coping mechanism sort of, because people will say that he was not in his right mind. Having Craig around is like having a housefly in a closed door. So annoying. Anyway, I hope that we don’t have so many Craig’s around us these days?
Why Do We Ask Questions?
We ask questions to obtain information, get attention, to start up a conversation. We also ask questions to start a new relationship. It is more likely, that you got to be married to your spouse through the art of questioning each other and receiving feedback that you valued about each other. We as well, ask questions to gain clarification, We do ask questions to build trust. And so many other reasons we ask questions. You remember the old cliché –when we use questioning as an Ice breaker. For instance, if you are in a group and nobody wants to talk to each other; what do you do to break the silence? You can just throw a question like. How do you like the weather today?” Then wait for the responses to start pouring in immediately. Instantly, people will start to loosen up to conversation once a question is asked. You see questioning motivates people to engage in conversation, to connect, relate, trust, and share information, as well as used to grab attention.
In this my examples, you can see how effective using questioning can get people’s interest, and dissolve indifference or silence. Often time questioning is just a better way to start up a conversation, initiate action, seek information on any issue of interest or controversy, questioning is also used to understand people’s interests, motives, fears, and desires, or even disagreement. So my advice here is that we have to start using questioning as part of the communication tools.
Anybody Can Use Questioning
Questioning is a very good tool anybody can use to give and receive information, whether as a parent, teacher, doctor, group leader, business executive director, manager, police officer, a coach, or a lawyer. By using questioning as a communication tool, a lot can be shared and learned from one another. The key to effective use of questioning lies in anybody’s ability or skill in knowing how to ask the right questions at the right time and to the right persons, or groups. If the question is properly asked, it will produce feedback, solutions, and relationship… I believe that asking the right questions makes people open up to conversation at any time anywhere. Just try it today intentionally and see what happens. The person you’re talking with will feel free and connected to respond to the questions provided it is a reasonable question asked at the right time and place.
Benefits Of Questioning – For Communication
Questioning has great benefits, once it is mastered and being put to practice. You can equally gain some insights from some professionals like lawyers, doctors, journalists, and teachers on how they skillfully make use of questioning in their work. I believe that anyone with good questioning skills can turn it into a lifetime career. After all, everything is marketable these days. Questioning helps for effective communication.
Reveals Motives
It is a skill that we all can learn and practice, as part of our communication skills. Also, we have to understand that when we ask our questions to people, they are not obligated to answer. Therefore, don’t get offended or take it so personally if people refuse to respond to your questions. Ask yourself, how often do you take the surveys that we receive. People have their choice of whether to respond to your question or not. Again, it all depends on what the question is about. For instance, you can’t refuse to answer your doctor’s questions if you want to be treated. But you can refuse to answer if the doctor asks you how much you have in your bank account. https://philmckinney.com/5-great-reasons-to-ask-questions/
We can use questioning to reveal motives, needs, situations of things, desires, goals, fears, disagreements, and more. There’s much information one can give and receive by the art of good questioning. We can through questioning provide empathy, love, care, protection, and ideas as the case may be. Another point to realize is that the kind of information you are seeking will determine the tone of your questioning. We can become effective communicators if we can include good questioning skills. So let us start today to practice the art of questioning to enhance our communications. Hope you’ve enjoyed it!
As always, please leave me your comment/opinion/question on this post.
This has been a n interesting read. I also had a friend that was like Craig. When we were preparing for a meeting with him, we used to joke about him and say, “I wonder if this is his question list”.
But you’re right, there is so much we can get out of questions if it’s skillfully done. We can look at teachers and how they approach questions.
Thanks for this post!